Tavita Pritchard Returns to Stanford as Head Coach, Reuniting with Andrew Luck to Lead a New Era
STANFORD - Long before they were reshaping the future of Stanford football together, Andrew Luck was just a wide-eyed freshman trying to figure out the basics. One day, sitting nervously in the quarterback room, he mustered the courage to ask a question about “hound-two protection.”
The response? Then-starter Tavita Pritchard gave him 20 minutes of his time - a gesture Luck never forgot.
“I couldn’t even hear the first 10 minutes because I was so intimidated,” Luck recalled. “But that moment stuck with me - his humility, his service, his belief in lifting up the people around him.”
Now, nearly two decades later, the two are back on the same sideline - this time with the roles reversed. Luck, now Stanford’s general manager, officially introduced Pritchard as the 37th head coach in program history on Tuesday, capping off an eight-month search that ultimately led right back to someone who knows the Farm inside and out.
For Pritchard, 38, this homecoming is more than a job. It’s a return to the place where his football journey began - and where he now hopes to build something lasting.
“Stanford is where I grew up,” Pritchard said. “To come back here with the chance to build belief, brotherhood, and competition - it’s a dream.”
From Underdog QB to Head Coach
Pritchard’s Stanford story is already etched into the program’s lore. In his first career start back in 2007, he engineered one of the biggest upsets in college football history - a 41-point stunner over then-No.
2 USC. But as Luck arrived and took over the starting job, Pritchard’s role shifted.
He stayed ready, stayed involved, and ultimately transitioned into coaching after graduating in 2009.
What followed was a 13-year run on the Stanford staff under Jim Harbaugh and David Shaw - a stretch that included three Rose Bowl appearances, a Fiesta Bowl, an Orange Bowl, and a dominant nine-game win streak over Cal. Pritchard climbed the ladder from defensive assistant to quarterbacks coach to offensive coordinator, helping guide the program through both its peak and its eventual downturn that led to Shaw’s resignation in 2022.
After three seasons as the Washington Commanders’ quarterbacks coach - where he helped mold Jayden Daniels into the AP Offensive Rookie of the Year and reach the 2024 NFC Championship Game - Pritchard is back on the Farm. And this time, he’s in charge.
A Familiar Face with a Fresh Vision
Pritchard takes over from Frank Reich, who served as interim head coach in 2025 and helped stabilize the program, leading Stanford to its first four-win season in five years - including a win over Cal to reclaim the Axe. Reich will remain with the team as a senior advisor, providing continuity and experience as the new regime takes shape.
Luck, who led the coaching search, said the process included around 30 candidates. But ultimately, the decision came back to someone he already knew could lead.
“Tavita has always been the person who elevates everyone around him,” Luck said. “That’s who he was in the quarterback room, and that’s who he is now.”
Importantly, previous head coaching experience wasn’t a requirement in Luck’s eyes - just the ability to lead, connect, and build.
Building with Grit, Not Just Brains
Pritchard didn’t dive deep into X’s and O’s during his introduction, but he made one thing clear: his offense will be built on toughness and the ability to impose their will on defenses. And he’s ready to challenge the stereotypes that often follow Stanford athletes.
“There’s this misconception that Stanford student-athletes are silver spoon, intellectual - that there’s a softness to it,” he said. “That couldn’t be further from the truth.
There is a grit and a toughness that exists in Stanford people, and we will lean into that. That’s something I know in my bones.”
That toughness will start, fittingly, in the quarterback room - the same place where Luck and Pritchard first connected.
“We want great quarterbacks - as many as we can bring in who fit Stanford - competing every day,” Pritchard said. “Competition made Andrew who he was. And yes, for the record, I still think I should have started over him.”
A Program Reunited, A Culture Rebuilt
This hire isn’t just about X’s and O’s or wins and losses. It’s about culture.
It’s about identity. And it’s about two former teammates who believe in the power of people and the potential of a place that’s already proven it can compete at the highest level.
“We’re going to stub our toes,” Luck acknowledged. “But with Tavita, with the alignment we have now, with the belief in this place - we will build something special.”
Pritchard echoed that sentiment.
“It’s all about people,” he said. “Supporting them.
Believing in them. Building something together.
Stanford has done it before - and we will do it again.”
The road ahead won’t be easy. Stanford is still climbing out of a stretch of lean seasons, and the college football landscape is more competitive - and chaotic - than ever. But with a head coach who knows the terrain, a GM who’s lived the journey, and a shared vision rooted in belief and grit, the Cardinal just might be ready to rise again.